Kentucky Retirement Systems Purchases 10,646 Shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB

Key Points

• Kentucky Retirement Systems increased its Kimberly-Clark stake by 51% in the first quarter, purchasing 10,646 shares and bringing its holdings to 31,509 shares valued at approximately $3.29 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 76.29% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with four Buy ratings, eleven Hold ratings and one Sell rating; the average price target is $117.93. Recent targets range from $110 to $121.
• Kimberly-Clark exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.97 in EPS and $4.16 billion in revenue, while revenue grew 2.7% year over year. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $1.28, equivalent to a 4.6% annualized yield.

Kentucky Retirement Systems lifted its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB - Free Report) by 51.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 31,509 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 10,646 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems' holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $3,291,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 26,997.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,368,407 shares of the company's stock worth $743,399,000 after purchasing an additional 7,341,215 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth approximately $521,184,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 50.4% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,839,572 shares of the company's stock worth $790,934,000 after purchasing an additional 2,628,206 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 459.9% during the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,695,768 shares of the company's stock worth $163,591,000 after purchasing an additional 1,392,873 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 5.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 20,830,890 shares of the company's stock worth $2,615,382,000 after purchasing an additional 997,397 shares during the period. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on KMB. Bank of America cut their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. UBS Group upped their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $106.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $101.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $117.93.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

Shares of Kimberly-Clark stock opened at $110.19 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $105.56 and a 200-day moving average of $102.41. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a 1-year low of $92.42 and a 1-year high of $137.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.38. The company has a market cap of $36.58 billion, a PE ratio of 17.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.08 and a beta of 0.26.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.04. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 152.79%. The business had revenue of $4.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.93 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were issued a $1.28 dividend. This represents a $5.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. Kimberly-Clark's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Katy Chen sold 1,596 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.34, for a total transaction of $152,162.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,362 shares in the company, valued at $797,233.08. This represents a 16.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, VP Andrew Scribner sold 4,095 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.00, for a total value of $401,310.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company's stock.

About Kimberly-Clark

Kimberly-Clark Corporation is a U.S.-based multinational manufacturer of personal care and consumer tissue products. The company develops, produces and markets a range of consumer brands and professional products, including facial and bathroom tissues, disposable diapers and training pants, feminine care, incontinence products and workplace hygiene solutions. Known for consumer-facing names such as Kleenex, Huggies, Kotex, Cottonelle and Scott, as well as professional offerings under Kimberly-Clark Professional and KleenGuard, the company supplies goods to retail, healthcare and institutional customers.

Founded in 1872 in Neenah, Wisconsin, Kimberly-Clark has expanded from its 19th-century paper-making roots into a global household and workplace products company.

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